23rd March 2011

A Fragrance to Remember.. Etat Libre d’Orange Archives 69

If you love your niche fragrances, then chances are you’re well acquainted with the subversive French perfume house Etat Libre d’Orange.

Each scent is created with complete freedom of expression, a liberated philosophy, and a wealth of innovative and creative notes. The fragrances are suffused with a back story that shapes your entire scent experience – but it’s not the abstract ‘he sees a girl, her scent is perfection’ kind of story. It’s a poetic yarn that makes you want to sample the scent and say “ahh, I get where the perfumer is coming from”. In short, Etat Libre d’Orange is no ordinary perfume house.

To celebrate 5 years of magnificent perfume creation Etat are releasing a brand new fragrance, Archives 69; both a tribute to the Etat Libre d’Orange flagship store at 69 Rue Des Archives in Paris, and an ode to sensual liberation. The scent is part of a series that celebrates the body, with musky, translucent, skin-like notes that linger. It marks a turning point for Etat Libre d’Orange; they’re maturing from overt sexuality to romanticism, and Archives 69 symbolises that transition. As such, it is described as a sort of “love schizophrenia” – a scent torn between pleasure and pain.

Etat describe this transition beautifully:
“She is a collector, and among her souvenirs can be found the beauty of beginnings, the ache of endings. In the sanctuary of her heart lie the sacred and the profane… she doesn’t linger long at the altar of regret. She lights the candle and burns the incense at the shrine of remembrance and expectation, pleasure and pain, in anticipation of the glorious memories yet to create.”

And just how is this story translated into a fragrance? With notes of Mandarin, Pink Pepper, Co2, Chilli Leaves, Orchid, Plum, Incense, Camphor, Benzoin, Patchouli and Musk, of course. The perfumer is Christina Nagel (of Miss Dior Cherie, Delices de Cartier and Dolce & Gabanna The One fame), and she is given free rein to translate her own interpretation of a true skin perfume, complete with idiosyncratic, slightly metallic, musky, and spicy notes. Although the scent may divide opinions, one thing is for certain – it’s another must-try!

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